[Howe, William]: Corbutt, Charles
THE HONBLE. SR. WM. HOWE. KNIGHT OF THE BATH & COMMANDER IN CHIEF OF HIS MAJESTY'S FORCES IN AMERICA London: John Morris, 1777. Slight edge wear, minor tape repair in upper corners. Brief biography in pencil on verso. Image quite clean. Very good. An attractive mezzotint portrait of Sir William Howe, executed while he was serving as commander of the British forces in America. Howe is shown in a half-length standing pose, wearing the star and sash of the Order of the Bath. Howe succeeded Gage as commander of the British forces in the colonies during the Revolution, serving in this capacity from 1775 to 1778. He was quite popular with his troops, and the casual pose struck here communicates a sense of his pleasant demeanor. This print is an ample demonstration of the demand in England at the time for images of British war heroes. Howe had distinguished himself as early as the French and Indian War, and his stature as commander of British forces in North America helped create a market for his image, along with those of other key military leaders. British printers responded by creating several portraits, most of them bearing little resemblance to their subject. These portraits were instead created from a basic visual template. The present portrait of Howe is one such example of this trend, as it bears little resemblance to other contemporary portraits of him, and there is no record of the General having sat for a portrait by a Charles Corbutt. To further complicate matters, "Charles Corbutt" was a pseudonym used by a Dublin-born engraver named Richard Purcell. A fine example of Revolutionary iconography. CRESSWELL, pp.40-41 (ref). ANB 11, p.345.
[Bookseller: William Reese Company - Americana]